Odd Romance
by Scada01
Summary: Videl develops feelings for Goten as she's looking after him. What will become of their relationship? Goten x Videl
1. Chapter 1: Crush

_The following story is a 'what if' scenario in which the events of the Majin Boo arc do not happen. In other words: no Babidi, no Boo, no Goku coming back to life._

 _Videl is aware that Gohan is Saiyaman, however she didn't pressure him into participating in the Tenkaichi Budoukai. She tried sparring with him and quickly realised that he and Goten are far above her level._

* * *

 **3:41 PM, Wednesday**

Videl entered her bedroom, took her backpack and socks off, walked over to her bed and fell into it. Summer break was finally here, and she was now faced with deciding what to do with her extra spare time. She planned on using it to fight crime, of course, but she found it fun to imagine other things to do.

A few months ago she would've said that she wanted to spend her time with Gohan, but that guy is so dense. Sometimes she wondered if he was even aware she had feelings for him. She was ready to give up on him, honestly.

Suddenly, her cell phone rang, and she was taken out of her thoughts.

She got up, walked over to her backpack, took her phone out and looked at the screen. It was Gohan's house number. Speak of the devil.

She answered it. "Hello?"

"Hi, Videl! It's Chichi."

"Oh, hello, Chichi. How are you?" Videl said as she walked back to her bed and sat down.

"I'm doing really well, thanks. And how are you?" Chichi asked. "I'll bet you're glad school's out, huh?"

"Yeah, I am. I'm doing great. How are Gohan and Goten?" Videl asked.

"Well, that's actually the reason I called you. See, me and Gohan are going to East City to apply him for a summer school." Chichi said.

Well, Videl really had no chance with Gohan now, she thought.

"Oh, really? All the way in East City? Why not here in Satan City?" Videl asked.

"Well, I looked into a lot of different summer schools and I think the one I chose for him is the best one." Chichi explained. "..Anyway, listen. The problem is Goten. He came down with a bad fever yesterday."

Videl suddenly remembered. That's right, Gohan had mentioned something about Goten being sick yesterday.

"Me and Gohan're leaving tomorrow morning, which is when we've set up the meeting with the school. Everyone else I've asked seems too busy to help, and I know it's pretty short notice, but.. could you babysit Goten until we get back? I-I can pay you if you want. Even though I know you don't need money. Probably." Chichi finished, stammering a bit.

"No no, you don't need to pay me. We're friends, of course I'll help." Videl said in honesty.

"Oh, thank you, Videl. That means a lot to me." Chichi said, relief in her voice.

"I'll come over first thing tomorrow morning." Videl said.

"Alright, thank you so much. See you then."

"Bye." Videl said before ending the call.

She then laid back down on her bed.

Babysitting a sick Goten. Not really something she was looking forward to, and she definitely didn't have experience in this area. But she really did want to do her best to help, and it was only for a day or so, so she felt confident she could handle it.

Goten was kind of like a nephew to her anyway, so she felt some form of responsibility to help him.

 **9:33 AM, Thursday**

Videl arrived at the son household in her aircraft. She was just putting it back into capsule form when Gohan came out of the house.

"Hello, Videl!" He said as he walked over to her.

"Hi, Gohan." Videl said back.

"I'm sorry about all this. I tried to get my mom to change the date of the meeting, but she wouldn't listen." Gohan said with his hand behind his head.

"No, I don't mind, really. It's just for a day anyway, I can manage that." Videl said.

"..Well, I appreciate it." Gohan said with a smile.

"..So.." Videl started after a moment of silence. "I guess we won't be seeing each other as much from now on."

"..Yeah.." Gohan said simply.

"Are you really okay with continuing school all throughout summer?" Videl asked. "I know your mom is strict about these things, but that it seems like overkill to me. You already do so well in normal school."

"Yeah, I guess it's a bit much.. but she really wants me to do it, and the idea doesn't bother me that much. I'm sure I'll meet lots of new friends there, too." Gohan said with a bit of a smile.

"Well, I'm glad you're so optimistic about it. I hope it works out for you." Videl said.

"Thanks."

"Oh, Videl, you're here?" Videl and Gohan turned to see Chichi, who was standing in the doorway.

"Hi, Chichi." Videl said.

"Come on in, and I'll show you where everything is." Chichi said before reentering the house.

 **9:40 AM**

Goten could hear his mother's voice from where he was laying in his room, and it sounded like she was talking to someone who wasn't Gohan. So he assumed Videl was here.

His assumption was confirmed when his bedroom door opened and Chichi and Videl walked through it.

He sat up a bit to greet them. "Hi, Videl." He managed to say with a somewhat scratchy voice, before coughing.

Videl was a bit taken aback by what she saw. Goten was usually so full of energy whenever she would come over. He was always the first one to run out the door to greet her. So to see him acting so drained, and to hear his weak voice compared to his usual spunk, made her sad.

"Hey, Goten, how're you feeling?" Videl asked.

"I'm feeling a little better now." Goten replied before clearing his throat.

"Yeah? That's good to hear." Videl said back.

"Me and Gohan are getting ready to leave now, so tell Videl if you need anything, okay sweetie?" Chichi said before turning toward the door and walking out of the room.

"Okay."

 **10:07 AM**

Videl watched Gohan step into their air car as Chichi started it up.

"Thanks again, Videl!" Chichi said over the engine's noises. "Don't worry, we'll be back before you know it."

"Okay, see you later!" Videl said loudly.

"Bye!" Gohan said loudly, waving his hand as Chichi flew the air car up into the sky.

"Bye!" Videl shouted as she waved back.

They then flew away into the distance.

After standing there for a bit, Videl walked back into the house and sat down at the dining room table. She then took her phone out of her pocket and checked to see if she had any text messages. She didn't.

"Videl?"

She perks up as she hears Goten's voice.

"Yeah?" She said back.

Goten walked down the hall and saw Videl sitting there.

"Good, you're still here." Goten said with relief in his voice.

"Whaddyou mean? Of course I'm still here."

"It got awful quiet after Mom and Gohan left. I got scared." Goten said before coughing.

"There's no reason to be afraid. I'm not going anywhere. You should probably go back to bed." Videl said before putting her phone back in her pocket.

"Okay."

"Are you feeling well enough to eat?" Videl asked, standing up.

"..I dunno.." Goten said slowly.

"Well, go and lie down then. I'm going to make myself something to eat, so call me if you need anything." Videl said.

"Mm-kay." Goten said as he walked off to the bathroom.

Videl walked into the kitchen and started making some ramen noodles.

She then heard the toilet flush, and after a bit, Goten walked back into the dining room. He kept walking until he could see Videl in the kitchen.

"Hey, Videl?"

"Yeah?"

"I changed my mind. Can I have some food?"

Videl thought about it a bit.

"..When was the last time you uh.. threw up?" She asked carefully.

"..Yesterday night I think.. I feel okay now I think."

Videl thought about it more, then decided. "Okay, I'll make you a little bit. Go ahead and wait in your bedroom and I'll call you when it's done."

"Okay. Thanks, Videl." Goten said before walking back to his room.

Ten minutes later, they were both sitting at the dinner table eating from bowls of ramen. Goten's had much less than Videl's had.

"..Nice and slow. Don't eat too much." Videl said between forkfuls.

Goten watched as Videl wolfed down her noodles.

He took a small mouthful, still watching her eating away.

"You must be really hungry." Goten said, surprised at how quickly she was eating.

Videl stopped eating and looked up at Goten. She smiled a bit.

"Yeah, I hardly ate anything before I came here. ..I was planning on sleeping in, since summer break is here, but then this happened." She said before taking another forkful.

"Oh yeah, summer break.." Goten said in a moment of realisation.

"..Will you be going to public school when summer break ends?" Videl asked.

"No, I think my mom stills wants to homeschool me."

"That's a shame. I'm sure the girls at school would love you." Videl said with a smile, before taking another bite.

Goten blushed a bit. "No they won't.." He said before eating a bit more.

"What are you talking about? Of course they will. You're a.. a handsome boy." Videl said, avoiding the word 'cute.'

"..Do the boys at your school all come after you?" Goten managed to ask through his embarrassment.

Videl then stopped eating and looked down a bit. "..No, not really. A lot of them assume I have a boyfriend without even talking to me. But most of them are too scared to even approach me, with me being the daughter of Mister Satan and all. My dad is really strict about boyfriends."

Goten had a bit of a puzzled look on his face, then began to cough.

"..So, your dad has to like the boy for him to be your boyfriend?" He asked naively.

"Pretty much, yeah. But he's said before that he'd only allow it if the guy could defeat him in a fight. And that's never gonna happen." Videl said before taking another forkful.

Goten looked a little surprised at this. "S-so, you've never had a boyfriend?" He asked apprehensively.

"Nope, not once."

Goten could hardly believe it. He'd had a crush on Videl since he first met her, and he thought she was completely out of his league, but she was actually single, and had been her whole life.

"What about you, Goten? Ever had a girlfriend?" Videl asked jokingly.

"What? No, 'course not! I don't even know any other girls.." Goten said before returning to his food.

Suddenly, Videl started to see Goten in a new light. He was usually a loud, somewhat annoying ball of energy, but now she was seeing him as another person. She was carrying on the conversation because she wanted to, not just because she had nothing better to do.

"..You know, you're actually pretty mature for your age, Goten. I don't know any seven-year-old that could hold a conversation like this." Videl said.

"Mature? What's that mean?" Goten asked obliviously.

"It means you act grown up. Like an adult."

"Oh. Is that a good thing?" Goten asked, wanting to know every detail of what Videl thought of him.

"..It can be a good thing or a bad thing. But I like it." Videl said before eating more ramen. She was almost done with hers.

Goten blew his nose.

"..Well, how're you feeling now?" Videl asked before picking up her bowl and drinking the remaining soup from it.

"A little better.."

"Well, in that case, I think I'll step outside for a bit. You should probably get back into bed." Videl said as she stretched and stood up.

"Uh, w-wait!" Goten said in a slight panic.

Videl turned back to Goten. "Huh?"

"Can.. can we keep talking here until I'm done with mine?" Goten asked with a bit of a frown.

Videl could tell he was troubled either by the idea of being alone in the house, or simply by her leaving. He'd always been visibly sad whenever she would leave to go back home, so she figured it was probably the latter.

She sat back down in her chair and smiled. "Okay. what do you want to talk about?"

One thing she knew for sure was that she didn't like it when Goten was sad.

"..Um.." Goten said quietly, looking down a bit.

Videl smirked. It was clear that he didn't actually have anything to talk about. He just wanted her to stay with him.

"Don't worry about it. I won't go outside if you don't want me to." She said.

Goten looked relieved. "..Thanks."

"What do you want to do today then?" Videl asked, resting her elbows on the table and her head on her hands.

"..Um.. well, I can't really do any of the things I usually do because I'm sick." Goten said quietly. "We could play with toys, though!"

Videl laughed. "I think I'm a little too old for that."

"Oh. Yeah."

"You should probably spend most of the day in bed if you want to get better." Videl said, looking at her phone.

"..Yeah.. but.." Goten said quietly as he looked down.

"But you want to be with me, right?" Videl asked with a smile.

Goten got embarrassed again. "W-well.. yeah.. I guess."

"Then why don't you lay on one of the couches in there?" Videl asked, pointing to the living room.

"Oh. Okay."

"Bring your bowl and whatever else you need." Videl said as she stood up and walked toward the living room.

"Okay." Goten said as he stood up and walked toward his bedroom.

Ten minutes later, they were both asleep on either couch.

 **12:29 PM**

Goten was the first to wake up. He rubbed his eyes as he turned over and looked at Videl.

He was surprised to see she was asleep at all. He didn't really remember very much from after he laid down.

He stood up and walked silently over to her. He then knelt in front of her face.

In some ways, she was even prettier when she was asleep. She looked like an angel*, albeit an angel that was drooling.

Goten thought he'd wipe the drool from her mouth, so he took a tissue and did his best.

Then she opened her eyes, which startled Goten a bit.

"Goten?" She said in a half-asleep voice. "What're you doing?"

She then sat up and rubbed her eye.

"I-I.. well you were drooling and I tried to clean it up. I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking." Goten said, again embarrassed. Spending this much time alone with his crush was not something he was used to dealing with.

"Sorry for what?" Videl asked as she stretched.

"..W-well I was sorta.. watching you sleep before that.." Goten's face was quite red now.

Videl giggled a bit. She would normally be mad, but how could she possibly be angry with such an innocent little boy?

"You're not mad?" Goten asked.

"No. I just hope I didn't look ugly."

"You didn't look ugly, you looked like an angel."

"Well, thank you very much." Videl said, smiling.

She then stopped smiling.

What was this feeling she was getting? She felt unusually happy. She's been around plenty of people of all ages, male and female, but this feeling was new to her. Was she getting attached to Goten? Or maybe she just liked having a 'little brother', so to speak?

"I um.." Goten started slowly.

"..What?"

"Well.. I got kinda close to your face.. I hope I didn't make you sick, too.." Goten said, concerned.

"Oh. Well, don't worry about it." Videl said. "Just be careful from now on."

"Okay."

 **8:22 PM**

The rest of the day went similarly to how it'd been going, with Videl and Goten talking about various mundane things and eating lunch and dinner.

Videl was sitting on the toilet, thinking to herself.

She hadn't been happy like this in a long time, and she was trying to pinpoint the cause of it. The obvious answer was Goten, but she'd been around him before.

Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Chichi and Gohan's voices through the wall.

"What's your temperature at now?" Chichi asked, setting her purse onto the table.

"I haven't checked it." Goten simply said.

"Well go do it then."

"Where is it?"

"In your room."

Goten then walked off to his room.

Videl flushed the toilet, washed her hands, dried them and came out of the bathroom.

"Hi, Videl!" Chichi said happily.

"We're back!" Gohan said, smiling.

"Hi, welcome back." Videl said, also smiling.

"Sorry we got back so late. It took much longer than I thought." Chichi said.

"That's okay. How did it go?" Videl asked.

"It went great! He got accepted and everything." Chichi said happily.

"Oh, that's great! I think." Videl said, a bit unsure.

"So, Goten wasn't too much of a handful, was he?" Chichi asked.

"No, no, not at all. I had a great time." Videl said honestly.

Chichi looked a bit confused. "..Really?"

"Yeah." Videl said.

"It says thirty-six point five." Goten said as he walked out of his room with the thermometer in his hand. "Is that bad?"

"That's from under your arm?" Chichi asked as she took the thermometer from him.

"Yeah."

"You're getting better." Chichi said, handing it back to him.

"He hasn't vomited all day, so I gave him small amounts of food, is that okay?" Videl asked.

"Yeah, that's fine. You did a great job, Videl. Thank you so much." Chichi said.

"It was no trouble, really." Videl said with a smile.

"Mom, can Videl stay the night? Please?" Goten asked hopefully.

"Oh, of course she can!" Chichi said before looking at Videl. "It's pretty late, so it's probably better that way. But it's your choice."

A moment was all Videl needed to make up her mind. "Okay. Sure."

 **9:12 PM**

Gohan and Goten had just finished brushing their teeth together, as was their nightly routine. Videl was already asleep in the spare room.

"Well, goodnight." Gohan said quietly as he walked toward his door.

"Wait." Goten said quickly and quietly.

Gohan turned and looked back at Goten. "What?"

He then saw that Goten was looking a bit embarrassed.

"Can I.. can I ask you a question?" Goten asked quietly.

Gohan then walked over to Goten and knelt down in front of him. "Sure. what is it?"

Goten then looked at Gohan. "H-how do you.. um.." Goten sighed. "Nevermind.."

"No, it's okay. Say it. I want to help." Gohan said.

"..Well.. how do you.. how do you confess to a girl that you like her?" Goten asked, looking very embarrassed.

Gohan giggled quietly. "You're having girl troubles at your age? I'm not even having those yet. Sorry, Goten, I've got no experience. But you should probably just be honest and tell her how you feel." Gohan said, doing his best to say what sounded right.

"..Hm.. yeah, I guess.. okay. Thanks, Gohan." Goten said, feeling a little better.

"But you don't mean Videl, do you?" Gohan asked with a small smile.

Goten started panicking as soon as he realised what Gohan had just said. "N-no! No, no! Whaddyou mean? 'Course not!"

Gohan smiled. He'd hit the nail on the head, it seemed.

"Don't worry, I won't tell. Good luck." Gohan said as he walked toward his bedroom door, giving a thumbs-up. "See you tomorrow."

Gohan then entered his room and closed the door.

He thought it was cute that Goten was so serious about it. Nothing wrong with playing along, he thought. And it'd be funny to see Videl try and say no to Goten's confession. That'd be tough.

 **7:09 AM, Friday**

Having just woken up a few minutes ago, Goten was using the bathroom. Gohan was eating breakfast, and Videl was helping Chichi with the dishes.

After flushing the toilet and washing his hands, Goten came out of the bathroom.

"Good morning." Gohan said to him.

"Morning." Goten said back.

"Morning, Goten." Videl said.

"Feeling better?" Chichi asked as she washed a mug.

"Yeah, I barely feel sick at all." Goten said with a smile.

"Good. You should be fully recovered by tomorrow, then." Chichi said, handing the mug to Videl.

"Hey, that's great!" Videl said happily.

"..How long're you staying here, Videl?" Goten asked.

"..Oh.. I don't know. Until I'm done with these dishes, I guess." Videl said, drying the mug.

"Oh, don't let me keep you. You can leave now if you'd like." Chichi said, washing a plate.

"That's alright, I'll stay until this is done." Videl said.

"Thanks. I appreciate the help." Chichi said as she handed Videl the plate.

"Speaking of which, I should probably get going. I wouldn't want to be late for my first day of summer school." Gohan said as he stood up.

He then gave Goten a thumbs-up. Goten looked a bit embarrassed and looked away.

"All your things are in your backpack, right? You didn't forget anything?" Chichi asked as she turned the faucet off and dried her hands.

"Yes, I have everything." Gohan said as he put on his backpack.

Chichi gave Gohan a hug. "Have a great day, sweetie."

Gohan blushed a bit. "Mom.."

Videl giggled, then went back to drying the dishes.

Gohan then walked out the door and flew off.

"Bye!" He shouted.

Goten and Chichi waved as he flew away.

"Bye!" Chichi shouted back.

The two of them then walked back into the house.

"I'm hungry." Goten said with his hand on his stomach.

"I made bacon and eggs earlier, you can have yours now." Chichi said, walking toward the stove.

Goten walked over to the table and sat down. He wasn't sure how to go about this. He wanted to confess to Videl, but for some reason he couldn't imagine himself saying the words.

Chichi brought him a plate of bacon and eggs.

"Thanks." he said as he began eating.

He went over it again and again in his head, and there was no reason not to tell her, he thought. So why couldn't he just do it?

Before he knew it, he was done eating and Videl was done with the dishes.

"Well, I guess I'll be leaving now." Videl said to Goten.

"Oh. ..Right.. um.. okay. Bye.." Goten said, a bit sadly.

"Don't worry. I'll come over again soon." Videl said. Unlike most other times, she was actually getting sad over leaving, as well.

"When?" Goten asked.

"..I'm not sure. We'll see. Not too long." Videl said with a small smile.

"Okay." Goten said back.

"Goten, aren't you forgetting something?" Chichi asked.

"Oh. Right. Thanks for taking care of me." Goten said to Videl.

"You're very welcome." Videl said.

"Really, thank you, Videl." Chichi said. "You helped us a lot."

"It was nothing, really."

Videl then walked outside, pressed the button on her aircraft capsule and threw it in front of her. It then poofed into her aircraft.

While she was having good feelings yesterday, by contrast she was now feeling unusually depressed. And she hadn't even left yet.

She looked back at Goten and Chichi.

"Well, I'll see you-" She stopped.

Her heart sank when she saw that Goten had tears running down his cheeks. Chichi was rubbing his shoulder.

Videl turned to Goten and opened her arms wide.

Goten ran to her and gave her a big hug.

"It's okay. It's okay. I'll be back really soon, okay?" Videl said in an effort to comfort him.

What she didn't realise was that she needed comforting as well. Before she knew it, she was tearing up, too.

Chichi was a little confused now. It was normal for Goten to be upset when Videl would leave, but now Videl herself was also crying over it. What exactly happened yesterday?

After a few more moments, Goten and Videl separated and looked at each other in silence.

Videl then stood up. She was sad, but that hug made her feel better. She felt ready to leave.

"Alright, bye. I'll be back." Videl said as she got into her aircraft.

"Okay. Bye." Goten said with a sniff.

"Bye! Thanks again!" Chichi said, waving.

Videl waved as she started her aircraft and flew up into the sky.

Goten watched as she flew away.

He then walked back over to Chichi, still looking sad.

"It's okay. Don't cry. There's nothing to be sad about." Chichi said as she hugged him.

As she flew away in her aircraft, Videl started to get feelings of emptiness.

\- **To be continued**

* * *

 _*Yes, I am aware of that irony._


	2. Chapter 2: Confession

**Disclaimer**

 _The thoughts and feelings of the characters in this story are not representative of my own, nor do I condone anything the characters say or do. It is just a work of fiction._

* * *

 **9:18 AM, Friday**

Videl didn't know what to do with herself once she got home. She went straight to her room and fell into her bed.

From the moment she left Goten, it was like a big cloud was hanging over her head. And she didn't even understand why.

Why was it so hard to say goodbye to him? Why was she getting so attached to him? She couldn't figure it out. Was she falling in love?

..As crazy as it sounded to her, that's what it felt like. But she couldn't be in love with a seven-year-old, could she?

 **1:24 PM**

Goten, feeling almost completely recovered by now, was walking alone in the woods. He came out here to be alone so that he could think, which isn't something he does often.

All he could think about was Videl, and how he was going to confess his feelings for her. Would she even take him seriously? Or would she laugh it off and say she's too old for him? Out of all the possible outcomes, that one was the one he hated the idea of the most.

It would mean that she didn't even acknowledge Goten as a potential love interest, or even an equal person in the first place. He would much rather be simply turned down, because at least then he would know that she considered it and gave her honest answer. He did not want to be seen as a child.

But that brought him back to his original problem: how he was going to go about confessing to her.

Eventually, he came to the conclusion that he would just do it. Like Gohan said, the best way to confess is to just state how you feel.

The problem now was when he could see Videl again. She didn't say when she was coming back, she just said "soon."

Maybe he should go to her house instead, then.

 **2:11 PM**

Goten entered his house though the front door. Chichi was reclining on the couch, fanning herself with a paper fan.

"Mom, where does Videl live?" Goten asked as he sat down on the other couch.

"Satan City." Chichi said.

"Where's that?" Goten asked.

"North. That way." Chichi said, pointing north. "Why do you ask?"

"I wanna go see her." Goten said.

"What for?" Chichi asked as she sat up.

"I miss her." Goten simply said.

"She said she would come back soon, didn't she?" Chichi asked before taking a drink of her ice water.

"Yeah, but.. that could be any time. I wanna see her again today." Goten said.

"But you're still slightly sick." Chichi said. "And besides, I wouldn't let you go by yourself."

"Why not? I go to the forest by myself." Goten reasoned.

"That's different. Satan City is a huge place, and you could get lost easily." Chichi said with her hands on her hips.

"But Videl's dad is really popular, right?" Goten asked. "Couldn't I just ask someone where his house is?"

Chichi thought about it. "Hm.. well, I suppose that's true. But you can't just show up at her house uninvited. That'd be rude."

"Then what should I do?" Goten asked.

"Just wait for her to come back, sweetie. Be patient." Chichi said. "Why do you need to see her again so soon, anyway?"

"..I.. I just miss her, is all." Goten said, looking down.

Chichi was quite curious now. Usually when Goten was sad about Videl leaving, it would only last an hour or so. This was different. Did something happen yesterday?

"Just be patient, Goten. She'll come back." Chichi said as she stood up and walked into the kitchen.

Goten just sat there with a somewhat sad expression.

 **6:21 PM**

Videl was sitting at the dinner table with her father, eating dinner.

She wasn't acting excessively sad anymore, but Mister Satan could still tell that something was wrong.

"Is something upsetting you?" Mister Satan asked.

She looked up at him. "Huh? ..Uh, no.. it's nothing."

"I can tell when something is bothering you." Mister Satan said. "You know you can talk to me about it, right?"

"Yeah.. but it's nothing. It's just a little funk I'm going through, I guess." Videl said. "I'll feel better tomorrow."

She'd been feeling terrible since she left Goten, but she could only assume that it really was just some funk. She could only hope that was all it was.

 **11:27 AM, Saturday**

Mister Satan was sitting in his office twirling his pen when he got a call.

He answered it. "Yes?"

"Mister Satan, sir, there's a boy at the front door asking about your daughter." The voice on the other line said.

"A-a-a b- a.. a boy?!" Mister Satan stuttered angrily.

"Uh, well, yes," The voice started.

Mister Satan had already stormed out of his office and shut the door without saying anything else.

Once he got to the reception area, Mister Satan found himself face-to-face with the boy. He was surprised and confused to see that the boy was, in fact, a boy. A young one at that. With some weird-looking hair, as well.

Mister Satan cleared his throat.

"What's your name, kid?" He asked the boy in a brawny voice.

"I'm Son Goten." Goten said.

"Well, what brings you to my mansion?"

"I'm looking for Videl. Are you her dad?" Goten asked, looking up at Mister Satan.

"Yes, that I am. I am the one and only Mister Satan." Mister Satan said, again in a brawny voice, before posing proudly.

"..Um.. so where's Videl?"

Mister Satan could see that this kid was not impressed to meet him.

"Well, she's in her room. But why do you want to see her?" Mister Satan asked, leaning down and looking Goten over.

"I just wanna talk to her." Goten said.

"Are you one of her friends?" Mister Satan asked.

"Yeah." Goten simply said.

Mister Satan then had a realisation. "You wouldn't happen to be the one she was babysitting yesterday, would you?"

"Yeah, that's right." Goten said.

Mister Satan was suspicious of Videl's friends, and very protective of her, but he couldn't imagine this kid to be trouble.

"You there." Mister Satan said to one of his servants.

"Yes, Mister Satan?" He asked, standing at attention.

"Show this boy the way to Videl's room." Mister Satan said, pointing to Goten.

"Of course, sir." The servant said. "Come with me." He said to Goten.

Goten followed the man.

Finally, it was happening. He was going to be able to confess to Videl. He had butterflies in his stomach.

A minute or two later, they were at Videl's door.

"Here it is. Now, if you'll excuse me." The man said before walking down the hall.

"Thanks, mister!" Goten said before turning back to Videl's door.

He knocked on her door.

..No answer.

He knocked again, louder this time.

"Videl?" He said into the door.

..Still no answer.

He was going to knock again, but thought he'd try the doorknob. This wasn't getting him anywhere.

He turned the doorknob. It was unlocked.

"I'm coming in." He said as he opened the door and walked slowly into the room.

He was then able to hear the shower running in her bathroom.

"So that's where she is." He said to himself as he closed the door.

He walked toward the bathroom door and tried the doorknob. It was also unlocked.

There was a lot of steam, and Videl's clothes were on the floor.

"Videl? You in here?" Goten asked, still holding onto the door.

The shower combined with the ceiling vent was fairly loud, but Videl could swear she heard Goten's voice just now.

"What? Is someone there?" She asked before waiting to hear the response.

"Yeah, it's me, Goten." Goten said loudly.

"W- Goten?! What are you doing here?!" Videl asked, very confused.

"I flew here by myself so I could see you." Goten said. "Are you gonna be in there a while?"

Videl could hardly believe it. Goten flew all the way to Satan City by himself, just so he could see her?

"I-I'm coming out right now. Wait outside." She called out.

"Okay." Goten said before closing the door.

He walked back over to the front door and sat down near it.

Five minutes later, Videl stepped out of the bathroom wearing new clothes. Her hair was also dry, but wasn't in its usual pigtails.

Goten then smiled, stood up and ran toward her.

"Videl!" He said happily as he hugged her. "I missed you!"

Videl hugged him back. "I missed you too, Goten."

She then broke the hug. "But listen. It's not okay for you to just walk into people's bedrooms - and _bath_ rooms without getting their permission." She said with her hands on her hips.

"But the doors were unlocked." Goten said.

"Still, you should've waited for me to get out of the shower before coming in." Videl said.

"Okay. I'm sorry." Goten said remorsefully.

"It's okay. But what are you doing here? I told you I was coming back soon, right?"

"Yeah, but I couldn't wait. I needed to see you. Because I have to tell you something really important." Goten said, staring up into Videl's eyes.

She stared back into his eyes. "What?"

Suddenly her heart started beating faster. Why was he acting so serious? Was he going to say what she thought he was?

"..Something I always wanted to tell you." Goten said, still looking right at her.

"..What is it?" Videl asked.

"..I.. I love you. I'm in love with you." Goten said with surprising conviction.

Videl was blown away. She felt like he would say something to that effect, and she'd always known him to have a crush of some sort on her, but nothing she could have done would have prepared her for the words themselves.

"..Goten, I.."

So many emotions had overtaken her in an instant, and she didn't know what to say.

But then she thought about it. And it occurred to her.

"I love you, too." She said before kneeling down and hugging him.

Goten was quite surprised. He didn't expect this reaction from Videl. "Really?" He asked, hugging her back.

"Yes, really. Whenever I'm around you, I feel so happy and comfortable. I don't feel that way about anyone else. I'm in love with you, too. Will you be my boyfriend?"

She could hardly believe what she'd just said, but it was the truth. She'd wanted to believe her sadness was just some funk, but deep down, she knew it was something more. She was in love, and she couldn't hold it in anymore. She had to be honest.

Goten was very surprised now. To think that Videl shared his feelings, and to this degree.

"Y-yes!" Goten said as quick as he could.

"Good. Then it's settled." Videl said as she broke the hug, with her hands on his shoulders. She was blushing quite a bit.

She then kissed him on the lips and smiled at him.

Goten looked embarrassed and surprised at this, then leaned in and kissed Videl even more eagerly than she had done to him, taking Videl by surprise.

Videl quickly kissed him back and hugged him tightly.

After about twenty seconds, they separated and looked at each other.

Goten was breathing heavily. "..Wow.. I've never done that before.."

"..Neither have I.." Videl said, also a bit short of breath.

Goten hugged her again. "I love you."

She returned the hug as she sat down against the wall. "I love you more."

"No, I love you more." Goten said back.

"No, I love you more." Videl said back.

"..How long have you been in love with me?" Goten asked.

"..Since I babysat you, I guess." Videl said.

"I've been in love with you since I met you. So I love you more." Goten said with a smile.

Videl laughed a bit. "Well, I guess I have some catching up to do, then."

Goten laughed as well.

"..Um.." Goten started.

"Hm?"

"Is it really okay for us to be boyfriend and girlfriend?" Goten asked. "I-I thought for sure you were gonna say you were too old for me. And what about your dad?"

Videl was pleasantly surprised that Goten was putting so much thought into it. He really was mature for his age.

"We can worry about that stuff later. For now, let's just stay like this." She said, hugging him tighter.

"..Okay.." Goten said with a smile as he closed his eyes.

 **12:02 PM**

Videl and Goten were still embracing each other on the floor with peaceful expressions on their faces.

"..Um.. Videl?" Goten said quietly.

"Hm?"

"..We should probably get up now.." Goten said slowly.

"But I like it like this. I don't wanna let go yet." She said, hugging him tighter.

"..Yeah.. but.. well.. I uh.. kinda.. didn't tell anyone where I was going.." He said a little nervously.

"Huh? ..Wait, what?" Videl said, breaking the hug and looking at Goten. "You didn't tell your mom you were coming here?"

"..No.. hehe.." Goten said with a nervous smile.

"What?! Goten, why not?! She's probably worried sick!" Videl said, standing up and walking over to her phone.

"Well, she wouldn't have let me go if I told her!" Goten said.

Videl started dialing the Son house number. She then called and sat down on her bed.

"Hello?" Gohan's voice said after a few seconds.

"Hi, Gohan."

"Oh, hi, Videl."

"I'm sure you and your mom are wondering where Goten is. Well, he's right here." Videl said, looking at Goten.

"What?! Really?! So that's where he is.." Gohan said with relief in his voice.

Videl then heard Chichi's angry voice in the background, followed by some rustling.

"Hello? Videl?" Chichi said, sounding impatient.

"Hi, Chichi."

"You say Goten's at your place?"

"Yes, would you like to talk to him?" Videl asked.

"Yes, please." Chichi said, trying her best to sound composed.

Goten gulped.

Videl handed the phone to him.

Goten then held the phone up to his ear. "Hello?"

"Goten, what were you thinking?! Why would you fly all the way to Satan City without telling me?! I've been worried all day!" Chichi said loudly as Goten held the phone away from his ear.

"Sorry, Mom, but.. I-I knew you weren't gonna let me go by myself, so.."

"..You're in some trouble when you get home, young man. You are never to leave the house without telling me where you're going. Understand?"

"Yes, Mom.."

"Okay. Now give the phone back to Videl."

Goten handed the phone back to Videl. "Here."

Videl took the phone back and held it up to her ear. "Hello?"

"Hi again.. look, I'm really sorry about this. I'm gonna send Gohan over to pick him up. I'll make sure Goten doesn't do this again, that's for sure." Chichi said.

"No, it's fine. I don't mind, really. In fact, I-I could look after Goten again today if it's alright with you. He's a welcome guest here." Videl said, smiling at Goten.

Goten smiled back.

"Oh.. really? Well, I mean, I don't have any problems with him staying over there if it's no trouble.." Chichi said. "Are you sure though?"

"I'm sure, yes. It's no trouble at all." Videl said, still smiling at Goten, who looked very happy as well. "He can even stay the night if he wants. I'm sure you could use a break from him."

"..I suppose I could.. alright. That's fine with me. I'll have Gohan come by tomorrow then, okay?" Chichi asked.

"Yep, sounds good."

"Alright, thanks, Videl. You're a great friend, you know that?" Chichi asked.

Videl laughed a small laugh. "Well thanks, you're a great friend, too."

"Alright, talk to you tomorrow. Bye."

"Bye." Videl said before ending the call.

Goten then quickly hugged Videl. "Yaaay! I get to spend the night here! I've never done that before!" He said excitedly, toppling Videl over onto her bed.

"That's right. We'll have lots of time to do whatever we want. What would you like to do today?" Videl asked with a smile.

Goten thought about it, then blushed in a moment of realisation, before getting up off of Videl.

"Sorry. It looked kinda like we were doing that adult thing." Goten said, looking down.

Videl sat up. "..That adult thing? Wait, you mean.."

She was a bit caught off-guard. She hadn't thought at all about sex until now.

"..Where did you learn about that, Goten?"

"My school books. Mom talked to me about it a little." Goten said, still trying to look away.

"..Well, now that we're on that subject, listen up. We will not be doing that. We can kiss, but that's it. You're too young for anything more than kissing right now. When you become an adult, then we can do it." Videl said. "Okay?"

Goten looked at her. "Okay. I didn't want to anyway."

Videl smiled. "Good."

She then stood up. "Well, let's go on a little date, shall we? We are boyfriend and girlfriend, after all."

Goten looked up at her. "A date? Like what?"

"Well, nothing really. But I've been wanting to go shopping for summer clothes. So let's go do that." Videl said.

Goten smiled. "Okay!"

Videl's stomach then growled.

She looked down at it. "..But uh.. let's eat first."

"Okay!" Goten said again.

 **2:33 PM**

Videl was looking through various selections of clothes at one of the clothes shops in the mall. Goten was making funny faces at himself in the mirror.

"What do you think of this one, Goten?" Videl asked, showing him a yellow summer dress.

Goten looked at the dress in the mirror. "..Uh.. yeah, it's nice."

Videl frowned a bit. He hadn't shown much interest since they got here.

"Don't you care about what I'm getting? I want to wear things that you like." Videl asked, putting the dress back.

"..Well.. I think you'd be beautiful no matter what you wear." Goten said, still looking in the mirror.

Videl was a bit surprised by the compliment. She then smiled. "Well thank you very much, I'm glad you think so. In that case, I think I'll just get whatever I like. Did you want to get some new clothes, too?"

"No, I'm okay. I like my clothes. We're still gonna go to the toy store though, right?"

"Yes, yes. We'll go when I'm done here." Videl said, looking through the clothes.

Forty minutes later, Videl and Goten were standing at the checkout, paying for all the clothes.

"You sure took a long time choosing these.." Goten said, looking at all the articles of clothing she bought.

"Well if you'd helped me, I could've decided quicker. But in any case, I got a bunch of really nice ones, so I'm happy."

"Hey! Look who it is!"

Videl looked over to the front doorway of the shop and saw Erasa standing there with a smile on her face.

"..Oh, hey, Erasa." Videl said.

"Buying new clothes for summer, huh? That's cool." Erasa said before bending down in front of Goten. "And who's this little cutie?"

"I'm Son Goten!" Goten said happily.

Erasa shook Goten's hand. "I'm Erasa. It's nice to meet you."

Videl looked slightly irritated as she took her receipt.

"Thanks, have a good day." The clerk said to her.

"Are you babysitting him?" Erasa asked Videl.

Videl thought about her answer for a moment. She decided she would go against her better judgment and be honest.

"He's my boyfriend." Videl said with a slight blush, before taking Goten's hand. "Come on, Goten."

"Okay." Goten said as he walked with Videl.

"Bye-bye!" He said to Erasa as they left the store.

Erasa stood there with a very confused face. "..Wait.. what? ..What?!"

 **4:20 PM**

Goten and Videl were sitting at a table, finishing their food at a restaurant in the mall. Videl had bought Goten two toy monkeys from the toy store, which were on the table watching them eat.

It'd been a pretty uneventful first date, but Videl couldn't have been happier. It felt bizarre to be acting like a couple with someone so much younger than her, but she didn't care. She was in love.

Even so, she was a bit worried about what would happen as a result of this decision. Every action has consequences, and this one would likely have more than she was ready for.

"What do you think we should do about your mom and my dad? They're gonna find out sooner or later. What are we going to tell them?" Videl said before drinking from her soda.

"..Well, I think we should just tell them the truth. Your dad won't like it, but if I can defeat him, he'll be okay with it, right?"

"..No, Goten, you don't understand. He's not just going to be angry that I have a boyfriend, he's going to be angry that I chose a seven-year-old to be my boyfriend." Videl said a bit sadly. "Your mom is going to be really mad about it, too. She'll probably stop me from visiting."

"What? Why?" Goten asked naively.

"Because you're too young to be in a relationship with anyone, let alone someone ten years older than you. People are going to think it's wrong. Your mom will, too." Videl said.

Goten looked a bit upset at this. "..But I'm in love with you.."

"I know. I'm in love with you, too. We'll stay together no matter what. Don't worry." Videl said with a small smile as she put her hand on Goten's hand.

"Okay."

 **8:43 PM**

Videl and Goten were flying in Videl's aircraft back to her house. It had been a long day, and both were fairly tired. Goten was drifting to sleep.

Videl looked over at him and smiled. He really was cute.

Her smile disappeared as she began thinking about the ways this was going to impact Goten's life over the years. Was she making a mistake? Children are especially impressionable, and something as monumental as a relationship this early in his life is bound to either make or break him later on, she thought.

But despite all the voices in her head telling her it was wrong, she couldn't deny her own feelings. She had a love for Goten that she had never felt for anyone else. That was real. And she didn't doubt Goten had equal or greater feelings for her. To deny him his first love would be even more cruel, she thought.

About twenty minutes later, they were back at Mister Satan's mansion.

Goten was still asleep, so Videl picked him up and carried him, along with his two monkeys, into the mansion.

Mister Satan perked up as he saw Videl enter.

"Oh, Videl, you're back. It's about time." Mister Satan said as he walked toward her. "Where did you-"

Videl held her finger up to her mouth. "Shh." She then looked down at Goten and smiled.

"Oh. Right." Mister Satan said quietly. "So, where did you go?"

"To the mall. We went to a lot of places." Videl said as she walked up the stairs. "I'm probably gonna go straight to bed. I'm pretty tired."

"Alright, goodnight, Videl."

Videl entered her room and laid Goten down on her bed. It was big enough for both of them, and she knew there was no way Goten would try anything, so she saw no harm in sleeping in the same bed with him. The thought even excited her.

Just as she was about to turn toward the bathroom, Goten opened his eyes and sat up slowly.

"..Huh.. oh, I fell asleep?" Goten asked groggily, rubbing his eye.

Videl smiled. "Yeah. I'm feeling pretty sleepy too, so I'm gonna go brush my teeth and put on my pyjamas. Want to join me?"

"Okay." Goten said as he got up off of the bed and took his shoes off. He then followed her to the bathroom.

Videl took a brand-new toothbrush out of the drawer and handed it to Goten. "Here you go."

"Thanks."

They then brushed their teeth over the sink, looking at each other in the mirror. Goten could barely see the top of his own head, so he flew up until he was at Videl's eye level.

"Look, I'm as tall as you." Goten said with a smile.

Videl giggled a bit, then spat into the sink and swished her mouth with water, before spitting that out, too. She then walked over to the other drawers and opened the one that had her pyjamas in it. She reached to take her shirt off, then stopped.

She looked back at Goten, who was swishing his mouth out with water.

She shrugged. She didn't see the harm in letting him see her in her underwear. He's just a kid, after all.

She took her shirt off with a bit of a blush, then hurried and reached for her pyjama top. She grabbed it and looked back at Goten. He was looking at her with wide eyes.

"U-uh.."

"Don't- don't look." Videl said as she turned away in embarrassment.

Goten looked away with a blush.

Videl then hurried and put her pyjama top on, took her pants off, and put her pyjama bottoms on.

"Alright. Ready for bed." Videl said as she walked toward the door.

Goten looked at her. "Okay. Where am I sleeping?" He asked as he followed her back into her room.

"You can sleep in my bed." Videl said as she walked over to her bed.

"But then where will you sleep?"

Videl smirked. "I meant the two of us, together."

Goten blushed surprisedly. "You- you mean it?!"

"Yeah, of course. There's plenty of room. It's fine."

"..Okay!" Goten said happily as he jumped onto her bed.

He then got under the covers, and Videl turned the lights off before joining him.

"Goodnight, Videl." Goten said as he turned over and looked at her.

"Goodnight, Goten." Videl said with a smile.

"I love you." They both said in unison, before laughing.

\- **To be concluded**


	3. Chapter 3: Resolution

**Disclaimer**

 _The thoughts and feelings of the characters in this story are not representative of my own, nor do I condone anything the characters say or do. It is just a work of fiction._

* * *

 **10:11 AM, Sunday**

Videl, Goten and Gohan were standing outside Videl's front door.

"Sorry again Goten came here uninvited. He's never done this before." Gohan said.

"It was no trouble. He can come whenever he wants, as far as I'm concerned." Videl said, smiling at Goten.

Gohan looked a bit confused. "..Am I missing something here?"

"What?" Videl asked.

Gohan thought about it a bit more. "..Nothing, nevermind. ..Well, we'd better get going. Let's get together again soon." He said before flying into the air.

"Will do!" Videl said happily.

Goten smiled at her. "Well, see you later!"

Videl was happy that Goten wasn't upset about leaving this time.

"Okay, bye then!" She said, waving as he flew off with Gohan.

She stood there watching them fly away for a bit, then went back inside, feeling good.

 **11:25 AM**

Videl was sitting at her desk, gathering her thoughts and listening to music, when she heard a knock at her door.

She paused her music, stood up, walked over to the door, and opened it.

When she saw Erasa standing there with a serious expression on her face, her heart sank into her stomach.

"We need to talk." Erasa simply said.

Videl knew why she was here. She'd said something she shouldn't have yesterday, and now she was going to pay for it.

"..Right." Videl simply said as she stood aside to let Erasa in.

Erasa sat down on the end of the bed, and Videl sat in her desk chair, facing her.

"..About what you said yesterday.. that was a joke, right? You were joking?" Erasa asked.

"..No, it was the truth. Him and I are dating." Videl said, maintaining eye contact.

Erasa was bewildered. "..But.. how? He's like eight years old or something, right?"

"He's seven."

"That's even worse! He's practically a toddler!"

"So? What's your point?" Videl asked, getting somewhat riled.

Erasa stared at Videl in disbelief for a moment. "..I ..I never knew you were a pedophile. Who else knows about this?"

"Excuse me?" Videl started. "I am not a pedophile. Goten and I just happened to fall in love. His age had nothing to do with it."

"You cannot be serious! There's no way you could be in love with a seven-year-old child for his personality. He's still a kid! How the fuck are you not getting this?!"

"Are you trying to say I don't actually love him?! What do you know about me?!" Videl asked angrily.

"Okay, okay just.. stop. Let's not fight about this. How long has this been happening?" Erasa asked.

"..Since yesterday." Videl said, looking down.

"Well, there you go. You're just going through a fad or something. You'll-"

"No, it's not a fad! I'm really in love! I'm only happy when I'm with him, and I'm thinking about him all the time! He is, too!" Videl exclaimed, getting worked up.

"..If you're really thinking about what's best for him, you'd know that this is the worst thing you can do for him. Don't you have any sense?!"

"..How do you mean?" Videl asked.

"..You haven't actually thought about this at all, have you?" Erasa asked.

"..What?!" Videl asked impatiently.

"Is Goten attached to you?" Erasa asked.

"Huh? ..Yeah, of course! He's probably even more in love with me than I am with him. He's really sad whenever we're apart. Why do you ask?"

"Because, you idiot, Goten's parents aren't just gonna let this happen. They're gonna stop you two from ever seeing each other, and that'll probably ruin Goten's whole relationship with them. He'll start hating them." She said.

Videl was taken off-guard. She made a good point.

"And who knows what your dad will do when he finds out. Which he will." Erasa continued. "No one is gonna talk to you when the rumours start spreading, and you can forget about seeing Goten again. It's going to be a world of hurt for the both of you. Are you really willing to put yourself through that, just because of a silly little feeling?"

Videl hated to admit it, but Erasa was making the better argument here.

"..But.. then what am I supposed to do?" She asked, becoming upset.

"End it! Explain everything to him, and he'll probably understand. But even if he doesn't, it doesn't matter. It's for his own good. Just break it off. ..I can't believe I have to tell you that. I've lost respect for you, honestly." Erasa said before taking a breath.

Videl felt paralysed. "..But.."

"..Look, I can tell this means a lot to you. But if you go any further with it, you'll regret it later. It's not too late. Break it off and forget it ever happened." Erasa said, looking down.

"..Easy for you to say.." Videl said sadly.

The two of them sat in silence for a moment.

Erasa stood up. "..Well, I've made my case. It's up to you now to do the right thing."

She walked toward the door and looked back at Videl before leaving. "Bye."

For the rest of the day, Videl felt clueless as to what she should do next. On the one hand, she knew what Erasa said was true. If she tried to go through with the relationship seriously, it had the potential to ruin both her life and Goten's. She likely would regret it.

But on the other hand, she really did have strong feelings for Goten, and it hurt her very badly to even imagine breaking up with him.

 **2:30 PM, Monday**

Videl was sitting in her bedroom when her phone rang. She answered it without looking at the number.

"Hello?" She said into the phone.

"Hi, Videl!" Goten said on the other line.

"Oh, Goten. It's you. Hi."

She'd really wanted to talk to Goten, but at the same time, she really didn't.

"When do you think you'll come over again?" Goten asked. "I miss you."

"..Oh, Goten, I miss you, too. ..But.. I don't know when I'll be coming back. I need some time alone, to think." Videl said with a frown.

"..Okay.. think about what?"

"..Just.. things. Don't worry about it. I just need some time alone. But I'll come back pretty soon. Just wait and I'll let you know when."

"..Okay. ..Are you okay?" Goten asked, sounding concerned.

"..Yeah, I'm fine." Videl lied. "Nothing to worry about. I'll call you again soon, okay?"

"..Okay.."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Videl then ended the call, slumped in her chair and looked up at the ceiling. She just couldn't decide what to do. She felt lost.

 **2:25 PM, Wednesday**

Bulma and Trunks were over at the Son household. Goten and Trunks were out in the backyard.

"Hey, wanna play hide and seek?" Trunks asked.

Goten was staring into space, and didn't respond.

"Hey!"

Goten looked at Trunks. "Huh?"

"..What's going on with you? You've been acting weird ever since we got here." Trunks asked.

"Uh, nothing.." Goten said, looking away.

"..Just tell me."

"No." Goten said, still looking away.

Trunks looked down at the toy monkey Goten was holding.

He quickly snatched it.

Goten then looked and saw it in Trunks's hand.

"Hey! What're you doing? Give that back!" Goten said as he reached for it.

Trunks flew up into the air. "If you want it back, then tell me why you're acting weird!"

"Trunks, come on! Just give it back!" Goten said as he flew up after him.

Trunks flew further up. "No! Tell me!"

"Trunks!"

"Just give up! You know I'm faster than you!" Trunks said before turning and flying away.

Goten flew after him.

"..FINE!" Goten shouted.

Trunks slowed down, still out of Goten's reach. Goten flew down to the ground, and Trunks followed him.

"But listen. You can't tell anyone, okay? You have to promise not to tell anyone."

"Don't worry. I won't."

 **2:33 PM**

Trunks burst into the house and ran into the living room. "Goten kissed a girl!"

Chichi and Bulma looked very surprised.

"What?!" Chichi asked confusedly.

Goten zoomed in angrily behind Trunks. "Trunks! You said you wouldn't tell anybody!" He turned to Bulma and Chichi. "He promised he wouldn't tell anybody!" He said, pointing at Trunks and pouting.

"Is that true, Trunks?" Bulma asked.

"Well.. sort of.." Trunks said, looking away with his hand behind his head.

"You shouldn't break promises, Trunks. Especially not with your friends." Bulma said sternly.

"Yeah, that's right!" Goten said.

"Goten, who did you kiss?" Chichi asked. "I don't remember having any neighbours.."

Goten swallowed.

"He said her name was Videl." Trunks said.

As soon as he registered what Trunks had just said, Goten started to panic. The secret was out.

"W- TRUNKS!" Goten said angrily.

"Oh.. I was wondering about that." Chichi said, beginning to understand. He was at her house for a whole day; he would have had plenty of time to try something like that.

Bulma had a realisation and looked at Chichi. "Wait, Videl Satan? The one you told me about?"

"Yeah, Mister Satan's daughter." Chichi said to Bulma. "He has a crush on her, can you believe it?"

Bulma smiled brightly. "Aww, that's so cute."

Goten looked at his mother in confusion. "How did.. you know?"

"It was pretty obvious, you know." Chichi said with a small smile. "I've known all along."

Goten looked away in embarrassment. "Oh."

"So, what'd you do, just walk up and kiss her?" Bulma asked.

"Well, actually, she kissed me first." Goten explained.

Bulma held her hand to her mouth in surprise. "Really?"

Chichi suddenly looked very serious. "..On the cheek, right?"

"No." Goten shook his head. "On the mouth."

"What?! Why?!" Chichi practically shouted in surprise, standing up and startling Goten.

She hurried over to him and knelt in front of him, putting her hands on his shoulders. "Did she touch you anywhere? She didn't do anything to you, did she?!"

Goten looked startled. "N-no, whaddyou mean?"

"Did she do anything weird to you?" Chichi asked, obviously very concerned.

"No! W-wait, you mean.. that.. that thing?" Goten stammered.

"Yes, that." Chichi said quickly.

"No, she said I was too young for that. But I didn't want to anyway." Goten said innocently.

Chichi breathed a sigh of relief. "Good."

Bulma laughed a bit. "Calm down, Chichi. It's just a kiss."

Chichi looked back at her. "She's seventeen! Why would she kiss a seven-year-old on the lips?"

Bulma shrugged. "Maybe there's more to this crush than you think."

Chichi suddenly looked deep in thought. That's right; they did spend two full days together, without her supervision. Maybe there was something going on here, after all.

"Goten." She said seriously as she stood back up.

Goten looked up at his mother. "..Yeah?" He had a bad feeling.

"Tell me exactly what happened when you went to her house the other day."

Goten swallowed nervously. "..W-well, I.. when I got there.. I told her I was in love with her."

Bulma stifled a giggle.

"And what did she say?" Chichi asked just as seriously.

"She said she loved me, too, and hugged me."

"..And then what?" She pressed him.

"..Then she.. she asked if I would be her boyfriend."

Her expression changed to pure shock. She could hardly believe what she'd just heard.

Bulma gasped. "Really?"

"Then I said yes, and she kissed me on the mouth. I didn't want to tell you because Videl said you'd be mad."

"You've got that right!" Chichi said angrily, still slightly in disbelief. "What is the matter with her? W-why would she do that?!"

"Because we're in love!" Goten exclaimed.

"She's ten years older than you are! This is ridiculous, I'm calling her right now." Chichi said before turning around.

"Wait!" Goten said.

"Oh, let them be a couple." Bulma said. "Where's the harm in it?"

Chichi turned back to Bulma. "Excuse me? "Where's the harm?" Do you hear yourself?"

"I mean yeah, it's a little strange, but what's so bad about it?" Bulma asked. "So what if they're ten years apart? I think it's romantic."

"Goten is a CHILD. He wouldn't know the first thing about romance. He just has a crush, and there's nothing wrong with that. But Videl is WAY too old for him, are you kidding? I'm calling her right now and I'm gonna give her a piece of my mind. No one is gonna take my son from me." Chichi said before walking over to the phone.

 **2:40 PM**

Videl was trying her best to distance herself from Goten. She needed to be sure that what she was feeling for him was real love, and that she wasn't just going through a fad, like Erasa said.

She had been prepared to believe that it was a fad, but it'd been three days since she'd seen Goten, and her love for him had only grown. She desperately wanted to see him, but she felt she owed it to Goten to make sure it was true love before letting the relationship develop.

Just then, her phone rang.

She checked it and saw that it was the Son house number.

She stared down at the phone, wondering if she should answer it or not. She hadn't spoken to Goten since their last, short phone call. She decided she'd at least talk to him. There wasn't any harm in that, she figured.

She answered. "Hello?"

"..Hello, Videl." Chichi said on the other line.

Videl could tell by her tone of voice that something was wrong. "Uh, hi, Chichi."

"Goten told me that you kissed him. Is that true?"

Videl was shocked. "Uh- ..well.. well, yeah, I.. I-I guess I did.." She stuttered. She was at a loss for words.

"And you asked him to be your boyfriend? Is that also true?"

"..Yeah.."

"..Goten told me you didn't try to make any advances on him, and you said he was too young. Is that true, too? Or did you touch him?" Chichi asked, practically interrogating Videl at this point.

"No, I didn't do anything like that. We just kissed. ..And I don't regret it." Videl said, regaining her composure.

"Oh yeah? I suppose you're hoping I'll allow this to continue, huh? Well I won't. I'm ending it."

Mister Satan was walking by Videl's room when he heard her voice.

"Please, Chichi!" Videl begged. "We're really in love. Please don't keep us apart." She had tried to separate herself from Goten, but it wasn't working. She knew in her heart that her love was real.

Mister Satan looked surprised upon hearing this. So that's why Videl was acting depressed the other day. She was in a relationship.

"Absolutely not! Goten is way too young to be in a relationship of any kind, and I'll be damned if I'm gonna let a pedophile anywhere near my house!" Chichi said angrily into the phone.

"I'm not- I'm not a pedophile! It has nothing to do with his age!" Videl said back.

Now Mister Satan was very confused. What did this mean?

Then it hit him. The little boy from the other day. That was Videl's boyfriend.

He leaned against the wall and slid down into a sitting position as he listened in on the conversation. A million thoughts and emotions were running through his mind at once.

"Yeah, right!" Chichi continued. "I don't buy it. And you can't convince me otherwise. Listen here. You are not allowed to come to my house ever again. You got that?"

Goten looked upset to hear this.

"Chichi, please.." Videl said quietly and sadly.

"No. Goodbye. Never call this number again." Chichi said before hanging up.

Trunks felt very bad now. He regretted telling Chichi Goten's secret.

Chichi walked back into the room and sat down on the couch.

Bulma looked angrily at Chichi as she rubbed Goten's shoulder. "You didn't have to get so mad about it. You made Goten upset."

"I did it for his own good." Chichi said with her arms crossed. "..I can't believe Videl would do something like that. Sometimes you really don't know a person."

 **2:48 PM**

Mister Satan opened Videl's door and stood in the doorway. "Alright, the secret's out. Take me to him."

Videl looked at him confusedly, then looked surprised. "D-Dad, you.. you were listening? How much did you hear?"

"I heard it all. And I'm not pleased. I thought I told you that your boyfriend would have to defeat me in a fight before I allowed it."

"..Uh.. right, but.."

"No buts. Take me to this boyfriend of yours right now."

 **3:44 PM**

Gohan landed in front of his house, having just arrived home from school.

"I'm home!" He said as he opened the front door and took his shoes off.

He walked into the living room, where he found Chichi, Goten, Bulma and Trunks.

"Hey, Gohan." Trunks said.

"Hey, I didn't know you guys were coming over." Gohan said. It was then he noticed that none of them looked very happy. "..What's going on?"

"Have a seat." Chichi said simply.

"..Okay." Gohan said before sitting in a chair. "..Now what?"

"Goten, maybe you'd like to tell him, hm?" Chichi asked, visibly irritated.

"..No.. you tell him." Goten said, looking down.

"Tell me what?" Gohan said, looking at Goten, then at Chichi.

Chichi took a deep breath. "..Goten and Videl are in a.. or WERE, rather, in a romantic 'relationship.'"

Gohan's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. "WHAT?!"

He looked at Goten, then at Chichi, then at Goten again. "W-wait, so.. h-he confessed to her and- and she.."

"..Yeah.." Goten said quietly.

"..Oh boy.. I never would've suspected Videl to be a pedophile.." Gohan said, leaning back in his chair.

"I know! She seemed so nice otherwise. She's never coming back here, that's for sure." Chichi said, crossing her arms.

"Everyone keeps calling Videl that word. What does it mean?" Goten asked obliviously.

"..Well, a pedophile is someone.. attracted.. to children." Bulma said, trying to explain it in a simple way.

"Someone TOO attracted to children. It's okay to like kids, but not in the way you'd love your girlfriend or boyfriend. It's a bad word." Chichi said, wagging her finger.

"..But Videl isn't like that I don't think. She only loves me." Goten said.

"Yeah, that's what she says. She says they're really in love, and it has nothing to do with age or sex. I don't buy it." Chichi said, crossing her arms again.

"Again, you have no reason to believe that. I think they're really in love." Bulma said.

"..Oh, you're in support of this, Bulma?" Gohan asked.

"Yeah, I am." Bulma said. "Just because Goten's a kid doesn't mean he can't be in love, and I don't think we should be interfering with it."

"..Hm.. yeah, I guess.. so, wait, she didn't touch him or anything, right?" Gohan asked Chichi apprehensively.

"No, but they kissed. That's bad enough for me." Chichi said.

"..Wow.." Gohan said, leaning back. He rested his leg on his knee and put his hands behind his head. "..Hm.. maybe I should give her a call and talk to her about it."

"No, you will not. I already called her and ended it. No one else is allowed to call her from now on. She's out of our lives. Period." Chichi said sternly.

"..But maybe I could talk to her and work it out. She might really need help." Gohan reasoned.

"Tough. She'll have to find help from someone else. No one is allowed to call Videl."

Just then, a knock was heard at the door.

The room fell silent as everyone looked at each other.

"..Could that be her?" Trunks finally asked.

Chichi walked toward the door. "It better not be."

She opened it, and was met with an unexpected face. "..Mister Satan?!"

"Yes, I'm Mister Satan. And I'm here for a fight."

"..A fight with who?" Chichi asked, putting on her war face.

"That boy with the weird hair. It's come to my attention that he's in a relationship with my daughter, and I simply cannot allow it to continue before I test his strength."

Her expression softened. "..Oh, don't worry about that. I ended it already."

Just then, Goten walked up behind Chichi and looked out at Mister Satan.

"There he is!" Mister Satan exclaimed as he pointed at Goten. "You there! Come out here."

Goten stepped outside. "..Oh.. hi, Mister Satan.."

"Videl told me you're her boyfriend. Is that true?" Mister Satan asked.

Just then, Goten saw Videl standing behind her father and off to the side.

His eyes widened. "Videl!" He said excitedly as he ran toward her.

Mister Satan stepped in his way. "Answer my question."

"It's not true, I already told you." Chichi chimed in. "I put a stop to it."

"Let him speak for himself, please." Mister Satan said to Chichi, before looking back at Goten. "Are you in love with my daughter?"

"Yes. I am." Goten said firmly.

By this point, Bulma, Trunks and Gohan were watching from the doorway as well.

"Well then, come with me. We're going to have a duel." Mister Satan said, thumbing behind him. "I won't have my daughter in a relationship with a weakling."

"..Okay." Goten said as he walked with Mister Satan.

"Wait a minute! You really don't have a problem with this?!" Chichi asked, perplexed at Mister Satan's lack of concern.

"Huh? Whaddyou mean?" Mister Satan asked as he walked with Goten.

Chichi followed them. "Hey!"

Bulma walked over to Videl and held her hand out. "Hi, I'm Bulma Briefs. It's nice to meet you."

Videl looked surprised. "..WHAT? You- you're.. you're THE Bulma Briefs?"

Bulma laughed.

A minute or so later, Goten and Mister Satan were standing across from each other in the field. Everyone had gathered to watch.

Gohan walked up behind Goten. "Hey, uh.. listen. Go easy on him, okay?" He whispered into his ear.

"Huh? ..Okay, if you say so.."

Gohan then stepped back.

Goten put his hands together and bowed. Mister Satan did the same, then took a fighting stance. Goten got into his fighting stance as well.

Mister Satan then approached Goten and threw a punch. Goten grabbed his fist and, faster than Mister Satan's eyes could follow, punched him in the gut.

Mister Satan backed up and knelt in pain, clutching his stomach. He couldn't believe how hard this kid hit him. It felt like he'd been kicked by a horse.

Videl looked confused. "Huh? What happened?"

"..Wh- ..my God, who taught you to punch?!" Mister Satan asked in a strained voice.

"My mom." Goten simply said as he pointed to Chichi.

Chichi couldn't help but feel proud. Her seven-year-old son was stronger than the world champion.

"..Man, that really knocked the wind outta me! Hehe.." Mister Satan said before falling over.

Videl was incredibly surprised and confused now. "Wait, what?!"

She ran toward her father and knelt next to him. "Are you okay? What happened?"

"..He's got unbelievable strength. ..There's no way I can compete with that. He's the winner." Mister Satan managed to say.

Videl looked at Goten with surprise. Was he really stronger than her father? It was almost unimaginable to her. Did her father simply let Goten win?

Mister Satan struggled to stand up. "..I see. The next generation is improving faster than I thought. I'll have to work hard to catch up."

He had to rethink his plan, now. He'd planned to defeat Goten easily and then forbid the relationship that way, but he didn't plan on the possibility that Goten would beat him.

As much as he disliked the idea of his daughter dating a kid, he did not want to hurt her.

He turned to Videl. "..I have a few things to ask you before I allow the relationship. Let's have a seat and talk it over."

"..Okay.." Videl said, still confused as to why her father was even considering it.

A minute later, everyone was seated around the dinner table.

Videl decided to be the first to speak. "..Um.. Dad, do you really not care that I'm in love with.. a child?" She asked awkwardly.

"That's right! Why are you acting so casual? Your daughter is a-a-a sexual predator!" Chichi said angrily.

"No, I'm not! It's not about age. It's not even sexual! I'm just in love with him." Videl said in defence.

"Yeah, whatever." Chichi retorted.

"Let me be clear." Mister Satan started. "I don't think it's a good idea. I'd much rather this relationship end right here and now. ..But let me ask you something."

Videl looked at her father intently. "..What?"

Mister Satan looked back at her. "Do you love him? Honestly? With all your heart?"

Videl was surprised. She'd never heard her father talk so passionately before.

"..Yes, I do. I really am in love with him. ..I tried to separate myself from him as best I could, because I thought it was wrong. But for the few days I managed away from him, I was depressed. He was all I could think about." Videl said, speaking directly from her heart.

Mister Satan nodded at her, then turned to face Goten. "And what about you? How deep is your love for my daughter?"

"I've been in love with her pretty much since I met her, and.. I always wanted to tell her, but it took me a long time. I was really happy when she said she loved me, too. I'm always the happiest when I'm with her, and I cry when we have to leave each other." Goten said, doing his best to say what he was feeling. "That's love, right?"

Mister Satan sat with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. "..Hm.." He'd been against it at first, but now he wasn't as sure.

Chichi looked even angrier. "Hey! You're not actually going to approve of this, are you?! Not that it'll matter if you do. I don't care what you say, Goten is too young to have a girlfriend at all, let alone one ten years older than him!"

Mister Satan looked at her. "I know. ..But you can't deny that they are in love. ..The way I see it, if I take action against this, it will just make the both of them depressed, and it will distance me from Videl. I would rather allow it and see what becomes of it, than bring pain upon them by separating them."

Chichi was moved a bit as his words sunk in. The last thing she wanted was to bring a wall between Goten and herself.

"However, that doesn't mean I approve of breaking the law. I think you know what I'm referring to." Mister Satan said, looking at Videl.

"..Right. Don't worry, I would never do that." Videl said.

"Good. Well, I've said all I wanted to say." Mister Satan said.

"Well I agree with you." Bulma said. "I think if they're in love then they should be together."

Chichi crossed her arms. "Well, I think they shouldn't. For their own good. Goten is seven. Do you really think he understands what he'd be getting himself into? If they were three years apart, that'd be one thing. But Videl's almost an adult! It's.. just messed up. And- and what're people gonna think? If anyone finds out, they'll call them a couple of- of freaks!" She vented. "And do you really expect me to just take Videl's word for it that she won't make sexual advances on him?! As far as I'm concerned, she's just a.. a.."

"Chichi, that's enough." Bulma said, looking at Goten.

Chichi looked at Bulma, then at Goten, then down at the table. "Well, in any case, they shouldn't be together. Right, Gohan?"

"..Uh, well.. I mean.. I'm not really sure either way.." Gohan said with a nervous smile.

Chichi looked irritated. "Gohan! You're with me on this, right?"

Gohan stopped smiling. "..Well, if you really want to forbid it, then go ahead. It's up to you."

Chichi had a moment of realisation. That's right. She was in charge.

She looked around at everyone at the table. Each one was awaiting her answer. None of them were going to force this to happen. It was all up to her. She was Goten's mother, so she was in control.

She thought about it a bit more.

"Please?" Goten pleaded.

"Shh." Videl shushed him. "Let her decide."

"...No." Chichi finally said.

Goten and Videl frowned. Bulma looked disappointed, too.

"That's my answer for right now." Chichi added.

Goten looked at her. "..Huh?"

"What does that mean?" Bulma asked.

"..Well, I think the relationship is a bad idea, and I believe it can be avoided. Because Videl is probably just going through a weird teenage phase right now." Chichi said calmly. "So I'm going to stop the two from seeing each other. ..But maybe, if time goes on and you're both still in love, then I might consider allowing it."

Videl and Goten looked at each other.

"I might. No promises." Chichi concluded.

"..I don't have any complaints with that." Mister Satan said before standing up.

"Yeah, it's better than nothing, right?" Bulma said as she stood up. She then looked at Videl and gave her a thumbs-up. "Good luck."

"Thanks." Videl said with a small smile.

"Well, we'd better get going. Come on, Trunks." Bulma said before walking toward the door.

"Okay." Trunks said before turning to Goten. "See you later, Goten!"

"Bye, Trunks. Bye, Bulma." Goten said.

"Bye." Chichi said as she watched them open the front door and walk out through it.

Mister Satan put his hand on Videl's shoulder. "I'll be waiting outside." He said, before standing up and walking out the door.

Gohan and Chichi looked at Goten and Videl, then decided to go outside as well.

Videl and Goten just sat there for a moment, looking at each other.

"..I guess.. we can't be together after all.." Goten said a bit sadly.

"..Yeah.. but maybe one day." Videl said as she put her hand on his hand.

 **\- The end**

* * *

 _Well, there you have it. I know it got a bit ridiculous, and maybe I took it too seriously, and maybe it was badly written in some parts, and maybe some of the characters were out of character here and there. But I've wanted to make this for a long time, I had fun making it, and I think it turned out well enough._

 _I also want to clarify that I think Videl was in the wrong. A romantic relationship with a child, even a non-sexual one, is never a good idea._

 _Feedback is welcome. Let me know if you spot any errors._


End file.
